Customer Reviews

Toyota RAV4 1996-2002 (Chilton's Total Car Care Repair Manuals)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm the original owner of a 1997 RAV4 which has been a fabulous car. Understandably, at this age, the RAV has recently needed some TLC. I took my dad's advice of saving a lot of $$$ by attempting to do some maintenance myself instead of a shop. This is the first time I have worked on a car so I bought some tools (tool shopping is totally addicting, btw) and this book.

At first we debated between the Chilton book and the OEM Toyota shop manual which was twice the $$$. I was a bit skeptical that the Chilton book could thoroughly cover model years 1996-2002 which is essentially TWO different body styles and THREE different engines (96-97' had the orginal engine, 98-00' was a revised engine and 01-02 was the new body style). But what the heck, I wanted to save money so I went with the Chilton.

In the past few months I've done a bunch repairs: idle air control valve, cleaning the throttle body, replaced valve cover gasket, plugs, wires, distributor cap and rotors, tested a few sensors, etc....

My initial gut feeling was right. Though the book did a great job guiding me on some repairs, I found some instructions and illustrations lacking thoughtfulness. For example, their illustration states that the coolant hoses attached to the throttle body are the same for years 96-97' and 98-00' but in fact they are slightly different. This was just one of MANY slight mistakes throughout the book, and it was extremely frustrating especially for a beginner like me. And many of the instructions were very vague and bordering on incomplete (like the seemingly simple task of removing the valve cover which required me removing way more parts than the instructions stated). I found myself constantly seeking help from online
forums (RAV4world.com is great).

I really wished I would've forked up the extra $$$ for the OEM Toyota manual. My dad has one for his Previa and it is way more complete with better instructions and more illustrations.

This book might be fine for a seasoned mechanic, but for beginners like me, I would definitely suggest investing in the OEM Toyota manual.

I consider that this it's a good book. This book describes detailed the procedures of repair for Toyota RAV4. It seems to me excellent to mention the amount of photographies that allow to see with clarity where each screw is located.

In other hand, this book, also illustrates on the basic concepts of identification of screws and use of workshop tools.

For all things mentioned above, I recommend this book.

My husband and I were able to fix a problem with our 2002 Rav4 at a tenth of what it would have cost at the dealer. Good illustrations. Straightforward, easy to follow instructions. If one person came up with the concept for this book, he deserves the Nobel Prize

On a '01 Rav4 I'm seeing a P0750 code (Transmission solenoid A) which is consistent with the '01-'03 Rav4 ECU / Transmission problem that was the subject of a Toyota recall. I've been through the electrical diagrams in this book several times looking for the ECU connector pins that drive the transmission solenoids. Maybe I'm looking in the wrong spot, but I sure don't see that information. The control wires to the automatic transmission seem like an important omission.

Good book for experienced mechanics, but for the average guy I don't think there is enough detail or wrench sizes etc.

This isn't a very good substitute for the original Owner's Manual which was missing in the used car that a friend bought. This manual is meant for someone is willing to get their hands dirty by doing some of their own maintenance, repairs or even general engine overhaul. However, it does have a good section on trouble shooting and recommended maintenance schedule that can come in handy for someone that is new to car ownership.

I started working on cars as a college student using Chilton's and Haynes manuals. As I got older, I brought the OEM shop manuals and I find that the Chilton's are much better illustrated and easier to use. Us weekend mechanics should just stick with these and save our money. I would rather have a book to flip through than going through a CD to find what I am looking for.